Mesa quality - looking for some assurance

[ryjan]

0 problems with my boogies. I was ready to buy an Engl Fireball until I did some research on their forums. When someone has a problem with a Mark V or a Roadster, they always rave about how the guys at Mesa took such good care of them, answered their phone calls, responded to their e-mails, etc. I've even read about how the guys that live close enough to drive there and walk in will actually have Mike B walk out and hand them their repaired amp himself. What I've read about Engl's customer service is your lucky to even find the phone # let alone having someone actually answer it. They also have the rep of wiggling out of their warranty obligations like an insurance company. Plus, no footswitch? So rest assured that in the slight chance you do have an issue with a Mesa amp, at least you will be taken care of.

 

[Cleekster]

I owned a Laney AOR Pro tube 100 that all but died after 3 months......i had a Laney GH100L that croaked EVERTIME i cranked it...i went through 7 BRAND NEW heads in 2 1/2 months.....i had a Marshall JCM900 whose preamp crashed 6 months after i bought it.....i bought my Mesa 4 YEARS AGO and the only problem i've ever had(besides the crap mesa tubes it came with)is a staticey sound comeinf from the power section when the amp feels a vibration...it's currently in the shop being looked at....if someone gave me $2000 tomorrow i'd be at my local mesa dealer the next day no question about it.....a tube amp WILL break down...some times sooner rather than later it's just the way it is and it's for that reason that i always keep a SS/digital modeling amp as a backup.

Would you mind posting the results of your amp's physical - I get a similar sound sometimes.
BTW, my amp is a '93 Dual Rec that looks like it was in Elpelotero's SUV :mrgreen:
Except for this small problem, it's a beautiful sounding amp.


Randall

not at all.....i'll let you know what i find out.

 

[emperor_black]

In the end I sold both. I run a 5150 now strictly for insane palm muting metal and I have never been happier. Oh, and it's never given me a single problem.

Never say never! I had a '95 or '96, 5150. Worked wonderfully for almost 6 months. One fine day, no sound. Cold solder. After spending $80, no problems until I sold it. Now I regret why I ever sold it.

I've even read about how the guys that live close enough to drive there and walk in will actually have Mike B walk out and hand them their repaired amp himself.

pardon my ignorance. But, who is this Mike B? I know who Randall smith is, but not sure who Mike B is.

 

[boogieslayer]

My 17 year old Rectifiers survived a car crash in which I flipped an SUV 6 times at 80mph on a highway. They broke the windows and flew out. I recorded with them the next day.

Enough said. End of discussion.

HaHa Hell Yeah man !

thats kick *** !

 

[rockanomicon]

For what its worth.... I purchased a Roadster head and Recto cab at the beginning of this year. So far so good. I would recommend purchasing from a dealer that isn't likely to give you a royal "screwging" if it comes down to it. If something is wrong, I think a local independent is more likely to work with you than a big chain store. No matter what you look at, nothing is fail-safe.

 

[Elixir]

In the end I sold both. I run a 5150 now strictly for insane palm muting metal and I have never been happier. Oh, and it's never given me a single problem.

Never say never! I had a '95 or '96, 5150. Worked wonderfully for almost 6 months. One fine day, no sound. Cold solder. After spending $80, no problems until I sold it. Now I regret why I ever sold it.
)

Don't jinx me !

I love my 5150 dearly. I hear it all the time "man i should have never sold my 5150/6505"

It's such a killer metal amp man, soooo freaking killer.

 

[glennhue56]

STOP POSTING!!! Just when I'm convinced I'll be ok, people are logging in with "....mine has been fine for years except for the spritzfrocket that needed fixing...."

And for the record, I wasn't looking at people complaining about their Boogie on this or the other boards (oops, was I not supposed to mention that there are other online places where players evaluate their amps?). The thing I found both surprising (and troubling) was that overall, players LUUUuuuhhhhvvvv their Boogies. But more often than not, included in their rave would be things like "....well it came with a short in the overhead circuit, but I got it fixed right away. After that it was great!".

Anyway, please do me a favor and stop posting about the issues that came w/your new Boogie. I'm already prepared for ANYthing now, so your posts don't help! Thanks!!!

 

[emperor_black]

Dude! There is no such thing as an "failure-free" amp in this world! There will always be problems. These amps are based off an 1947 design. Dont you see computers have reduced from the size of a two story building to a laptop but the size of these amps have not changed? These are hand-built amps with testing done at every stage. That just means the failure rate will be much much less than other "British made" (dare I say the name?) amps. Didnt you read about the guy whose amp flew out the window and still was fine the next day for recording? Do you still feel the amps are not worth the money?

if you think so, dont buy one! Its your hard-earned money. Please invest it in the right amp for your taste. best of luck!

STOP POSTING!!! Just when I'm convinced I'll be ok, people are logging in with "....mine has been fine for years except for the spritzfrocket that needed fixing...."

And for the record, I wasn't looking at people complaining about their Boogie on this or the other boards (oops, was I not supposed to mention that there are other online places where players evaluate their amps?). The thing I found both surprising (and troubling) was that overall, players LUUUuuuhhhhvvvv their Boogies. But more often than not, included in their rave would be things like "....well it came with a short in the overhead circuit, but I got it fixed right away. After that it was great!".

Anyway, please do me a favor and stop posting about the issues that came w/your new Boogie. I'm already prepared for ANYthing now, so your posts don't help! Thanks!!!

 

[KH Guitar Freak]

Honestly, you should stop worrying about it. Anything in this world can fail, simple as that. If the one you get ever breaks down just after you've received it, you'll be able to go back and get a proper working one, or get it repaired for free. And no, it's not like one of those shody businesses where everything they sell fails, and couldn't give a rats arse about the replacement going down as well...

Btw, I recently got a Stiletto Deuce II head to go with my Roadster head and Stiletto 4X12 straight cab. They all are working just fine. Also, like I've mentioned, feel free to buy from a dealer that checks every Mesa that enters their warehouse. Some dealer don't just such checks on their products, hence letting very few bad ones slip through. After all, these amps are sometimes shipped across the nation, and internationally as well. God knows how those shipping companies handle the amps in transit...

 

[rs11gps]

Hi, newbie here. Have always loved the Mesa tone, from waaay back in the early 80s and the Mark/wicker series. Now am poised to purchase a Roadster head/cab, but am very concerned about the quality issue..

I rebuild and fix trashed amplifiers as a paying hobby. Don't worry about Mesa Engineering quality. They are as good as it gets in factory production quality and components. You may not have a chance to compare circuit boards and components, but I do. With other amps (Vox, Peavey, Marshall) I've spent hours replacing stock components with quality replacements from my electronics suppliers. I don't do that with Mesas. No need... I just replace whatever the musician fried with his drink, etc.

Here's a shot of a Mesa project I worked on:

The amp looked like it had been through a flood! It was rusted and had leaves inside it. I did a lot of rehab to the cosmetics, but the amp worked like a champ.

That Triple Rectifier is now my primary personal amp. Cheers - Roger

 

[emperor_black]

Dang! I never knew the triple recto had so many power tubes! It must be an expensive retube exercise! :?

 

[Elixir]

My local amp tech swears Boogie is crap and that they currently always ship faulty products.

 

[rs11gps]

Dang! I never knew the triple recto had so many power tubes! It must be an expensive retube exercise! :?

Hopefully, you don't blow them all at the same time. 8)

 

[Elixir]

Look around and see how many threads are dedicated to problems. I have not seen this with any other amp manufacturer. Maybe they took a hit in quality control?

5150 i'll never let you go

 

[emperor_black]

Look around and see how many threads are dedicated to problems. I have not seen this with any other amp manufacturer. Maybe they took a hit in quality control?

5150 i'll never let you go

If I get a tax-refund this on this year's return, I'm buying a 5150! or a 5150II. :lol:

 

[greg_moreira]

i bought my triple recto roughly three years ago id say. I bought it used, and have used it regularly and havent touched it once. never had a single problem, and havent even changed tubes(i know ive put plenty of time on them..and who knows how much time the previous owner had on em). i run it pretty hot too. bold with the silicon diode setting, run with the loop on as a master volume amp with the preamp volumes driven hard. its got 6l6 tubes, and when i bought it...the previous owner had run it in el34 mode.....and I accidentally ran it that way for a while til i educated myself well enough to know that this is supposed to be a bad idea. no probs though....

additionally....i dont treat the amp bad by any stretch....but im also not anal about keeping after it either. i pretty much just use it..... it gets carted around in my trunk regularly between the rehearsal space, home, and shows and its never had any hiccups.

nothing is perfect of course, but mine is a fine example id say

 

[pataklp]

not so bad, but not so good. way, way overrated. You better go and get an Engl powerball, which works better, has more gain, and nicer than mesa, and has better clean channel. and cost almost half a price. They very similar, both hi class, hi gain amps. But here in europe mesa is 2550€, and engl is about 1450€. I have a dual rec, but I am selling it, because like I sad...they are good amps, no doubt, but way, way overrated.........

 

[emperor_black]

and cost almost half a price.

that's probably because ENGL's are made in Germany. I think. If not, please correct me. :mrgreen:

 

[KH Guitar Freak]

not so bad, but not so good. way, way overrated. You better go and get an Engl powerball, which works better, has more gain, and nicer than mesa, and has better clean channel. and cost almost half a price. They very similar, both hi class, hi gain amps. But here in europe mesa is 2550€, and engl is about 1450€. I have a dual rec, but I am selling it, because like I sad...they are good amps, no doubt, but way, way overrated.........

Apples vs. oranges. ENGLs are definitely also expensive anywhere outside Europe...